Heartstopper Writer Alice Oseman Breaks Down the Episode 4 Revelation That Was ‘Planned From the Moment I Created Isaac’
In its third season (recapped here), Netflix’s Heartstopper remains one of the most swoon-worthy series ever. But in Episode 4, Isaac discloses to his tight-knit friend group that he won’t be following them down the path to coupledom: Like creator Alice Oseman, he identifies as asexual and aromantic. “I had that planned from the moment I created the character,” Oseman tells TVLine. “I knew that was what I wanted to do with him.
“I think a lot of people — most people in the world — don’t know what it means to be asexual, to be aromantic” she continues. “So with Isaac, I wanted to show a sort of classic coming-out story where, very similar to a gay coming-out story, he feels like something is different about him. Maybe has a little experiment with someone” — sorry, James — “and it doesn’t go well, so he still feels very weird. Then he has to find out what these new labels mean and sort of find some self-acceptance in the end.”
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Not only has the arc provided great story for our favorite bookworm, it’s also, knock wood, opened some viewers’ eyes. “I hoped that it would help people understand what that experience is like,” says Oseman, “because for a lot of people watching, they will never have seen a character like that before.
“Isaac can’t represent everyone,” she hastens to add, “but I hope that [thanks to his inclusion], we’ll see more characters like him in other shows or movies and just improve the representation in general and encourage more to be created. I hope that it does some good.”
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